CHAPTER 59
Human world: November 19, past midnight.
Penelope screamed incoherently in Erik’s tight embrace. Kaliope sat on her heels, rocking back and forth. Her eyes were wide open, unblinking. She was silent. Penelope wriggled out from Erik’s arms and collapsed on the ground next to her mother. She stopped screaming and only sobbed. Her body trembled but not from the cold. She clutched Kaliope’s arm, but her mother didn’t stop swaying.
“Mom?”
Erik hunkered next to them.
“Mom?” Penelope asked again.
“He is gone.” Kaliope’s lips trembled. She turned to Penelope and stared at her. She stopped rocking and took her daughter’s face in her hands. “Your father is gone. We are alone.”
Penelope began to cry again. Erik hugged her close to his wide chest, and she clung to him. Their hair was caked with dirt and blood, their clothes torn and filthy. A huge bruise on Kaliope's cheek was fading away, but still visible in an angry purple under the dirt covering her skin.
It started to rain. The first drops were a thin drizzle, soon replaced by a steady shower. Pieces of debris from the earthquake were scattered on the sidewalk in front of Kaliope’s house. A large fallen tree in the neighbors’ front yard had squished the fence. Another tree had collapsed in an “x” on top of the first one.
“Come inside.” Kaliope motioned to Penelope and Erik and walked toward the door of the house.
Before the three of them entered, they heard someone calling, “Mrs. Stephanopoulos! Penelope!”
Savannah ran up to the gate, opened it, and hurried to them. “Where is Logan? And Jatred? Are they okay?”
“Savannah?” Kaliope looked at her incredulously. “What are you doing here? It’s the middle of the night.”
Savannah took in the appearance of each of them but she didn’t comment, only gulped. Her eyes were wide open when she looked from one Shifter to the next. “What's happened to you?”
They exchanged quick glances. Penelope wiped her eyes with her fists. Kaliope said, “Oh. Never mind that. Who are you looking for?”
“They are okay. Why are you here?” It was Erik’s turn to investigate.
“I’m sorry… I…” Savannah looked again from Erik to Penelope to Kaliope.
“She knows,” Erik said with his mind. “I don’t know how, but she does.”
Penelope and Kaliope shot him a nervous glance. Erik walked down the stairs away from the door and toward Savannah. She instinctively stepped back. He stopped and put his hands up, palms out. “Easy. I’m not going to do anything. Look. You shouldn’t be here.”
“I know. I won’t tell anyone. I only want to know if they are fine… Logan and Jatred.”
“They are. Nothing happened to them. Go home, Savannah.” Erik looked grimly into her eyes.
***
Tyrrell squinted into the night. Despite the earthquake’s destruction, the neighborhood was quiet and empty, asleep. He leaned with his back against the tree trunk and turned to look at the Tornwoods. Andy and Ivona huddled together. Ivona hid her face in her hands. Her body shook from silent sobs. Bogdan sat with Lusia right next to his parents. Lusia’s face was red and blotchy. She stared ahead, numb, absentmindedly pulling the grass from the lawn. Lusia’s parents stood, talking with their minds.
“So many died. Too many.” Ivona shook her head. “My cousins. Your nephew. Friends,” she whispered to Andy.
Andy stroked her back in gentle circles.
They heard quiet steps approaching from the street. Everyone looked up. Georgeta and her parents opened the gate and rushed in. “Is Erik here?” Georgeta asked, nervously scanning the yard with her eyes.
“No,” Tyrrell said.
“He went to look for Penelope after the battle. Remember? Maybe they’ve got back together?” Lusia said.
Georgeta walked to her and kneeled down. She put her arms around Lusia and hugged her. “It’s over. It’s all over.”
Lusia hugged Georgeta back and nodded.
***
Jasmira leaned her head on Jatred’s shoulder. They sat in silence on the stairs, watching the rain. Behind them the solemn-faced warriors stood, engraved into the vast double doors of the mansion. In front of them, the fountain lay broken into three large chunks and a mass of smaller rocks scattered around.
“J?” Jasmira asked and straightened.
He turned his head to look at her. Despite the dirt and exhaustion she looked beautiful to him. Jatred reached up and tucked a strand of hair, stiff from dried blood, behind Jasmira’s ear. He smiled and touched her cheek. She smiled back.
They both looked at the Amulet. It hung down from Jasmira’s neck, bright against her dirty, torn shirt. Red light pulsed in the middle of the blue gem.
“It’s blue again. What does it mean?” Jasmira asked.
“I don’t know. Maybe it’s the sign that the ten-thousand-year mark is over.”
“So am I the Amulet’s protector now?”
“I think you are. Without the fancy coronation, the ceremony, the Goddesses passing the Amulet from me to you. It’s easier this way, isn’t it?” He grinned. His white teeth gleamed against his grime-smeared face.
Jasmira smiled and slipped the Amulet under her shirt. “I will keep it safe. We have a special place inside.” She motioned toward the house.
“I would hope so.”
“J?” She bit her lip.
“Yes?”
“I don’t want to lose you again.”
He took her hand in his and kissed it gently. “You won’t.”
“But the memories… you will never remember what we’ve had.” A single tear rolled down Jasmira’s face, etching a line in the dried dirt on her skin.
Jatred wiped it off with his hand and looked into her eyes. A small smile played on his lips. A few moments passed before he shrugged and said, “We can always start all over.”
Jasmira’s lips parted, her eyes widening.
Jatred lowered his face to hers and kissed her for a long time. He looked at her, smiling, “You see? This is our first kiss.”
THE END.
If you enjoyed reading Forged by Greed, please share your enthusiasm for this book with your friends and family members.
A review on Goodreads and Amazon is always appreciated.
Questions and comments are welcome. Email the author at [email protected]
Forged by Synergy, the second book in The Forged Series will be published in summer 2013. Please visit author’s website for more information and to sign up for her monthly newsletter at www.angelapeart.com
Table of Contents
Start
Forged by Greed Page 34
